One episode it took, for Donna to become my favourite Doctor Who companion EVER :P
First things first. DONNA FREAKING NOBLE. I knew she was going to be awesome, but she surpassed even my expectations. I was one of the very few people who actually loved her in The Runaway Bride (not the first half, but the second half and in particular her final scene). But here we got a Donna much more grown up, mature and brilliant, while still maintaining her spunk and bold craziness. She's like a force of nature, and if anyone is going to be able to take on the Doctor, challenge him, and force him into recognizing his faults through sheer brute force, its her. At the same time though, she's sweet, sensitive, caring, and very very human. Essentially, she's Rose, but with a lot more maturity, wisdom and depth. (Sorry, that sounded a bit harsh. I do like Rose so I didn't mean that in a negative way!)
Some people are criticizing RTD for writing another 'companion puts their life on hold and does nothing with their meaningless, Doctor-less existence' story, but I disagree. Because that look in her eyes when she tells her grandad that she's "waiting"... that's not someone who's dissatisfied and depressed. That's someone full of hope. That's someone on a mission, who is living the life she wants even if its unconventional, and even if she is being criticized for it by people she loves. She's not just drifting, she's searching, and even if she never finds him, she's damn well gonna have a brilliant life trying. I loved her so much for that ♥ Yes, her speech to the Doctor about Egypt was typical RTD trying to impose the above mantra onto the character. But I think Catherine Tate rose above that in her delivery, because what I saw in her most of all was optimistic hope. Unlike Sarah Jane, whose life seemed to come to a standstill after losing the Doctor, Donna is still very much alive.
Now... The Doctor. I was a little stunned with the characterisation of the Doctor in this episode. Absolutely, honestly, stunned. Because I truly didn't expected it from a RTD ep. This Doctor, was an absolute shadow of his former self. Not only did he have a glaringly obviously reduced amount of dialogue in the first half, even after meeting Donna he spent a lot of time quietly working as she babbled on. He was barely reacting. He sometimes seemed off in his own little world of pain and guilt, only half registering the things going on around him. When he realised he couldn't save everyone, he had a massive freak out that I found harder to watch than probably almost all the other comparable scenes in the show to date. He looked petrified. And David conveyed it brilliantly. It was almost like a Post Traumatic Stress response, taking him straight back to the moment he knew he couldn't save Astrid; the Master; Rose etc. He didn't stop and think and try and work out another way, he just... froze. The losses are piling up, and finally we get to see it having a real impact on him.
And the idea of taking on another companion, scares him to death. He so desperately craves companionship, he so desperately needs a hand to hold, a person to talk to, to share the universe with, and yet when he invites her on board it looks like its taking everything he has not to just run away. Because he's getting to the point where the trail of destroyed lives he leaves in his wake is becoming simply too much to deal with. Up until this point he's been the master of repression and denial. Of course, he has his moments of emo, but he can compartmentalise unlike anyone i've ever seen. The Doctor in this episode appears to have completely lost that ability. The floodgates have opened and there's no turning back. He's scared. He's scared to death, and I cant help but be very very worried that he's taken a gigantic bite out of the metaphorical apple by inviting another companion on board at this point, and man does he know it. But like the doomed tragic hero he is, he does it anyway. If he loses Donna, if her arc really is going to be as heartbreaking and tragic as RTD keeps insisting, I shudder to think about the impact that's going to have on him. Because he's hanging on by a very thin thread already.
Of course, knowing RTD, this entire Broken!Doctor characterisation could be dropped entirely next week :P Obviously they cant have him fragile and shattered the entire season, but I sincerely hope they don't suddenly go back to s2 happy Doctor, because there's a real opportunity for some great character moments if they follow this story through properly.
This is getting way too long, but I also have to say that I ADORED all the Martha references ♥ I squeed entirely too much when he said Martha was "brilliant", and it broke my heart to hear that he believes he "destroyed half her life". The Martha that we saw in Torchwood was far from destroyed, and I think its gonna do wonders for the Doctor to see her again, all confident and intelligent and sure of herself. She may have gone through hell with the Doctor, but man did she come out the other side someone to be proud of :D Martha encapsulates what this show is about: a companion who took everything the Doctor taught her, and has used it to better herself and her life. Her normal life. On Earth. She doesn't need to be whizzing around the universe in the little blue box, she truly gets that the greatest adventure you can have is a life on earth with the people you love. And I hope the Doctor realises that when he sees her again, because it might be enough to allow him to come to terms with everything he did (and didn't do) for, and to her, last year.
Catherine Tate freaking ROCKS. 5 minutes in and I was already saying she's gonna be my favourite companion so far :) She's a brilliant comedic actress, but man does she deliver in the serious scenes. And her chemistry with David just sparkles. They are going to be the best Tardis team ever :D
There is nothing I can say about THAT scene that hasn't already been said by everyone else, so i'll just say that yes, I screamed. I literally screamed when I saw the back of her head :P I cant believe they managed to keep it entirely under wraps! That's a serious achievement :)
The alien plot itself was really kinda weak ;) Miss Foster was pretty forgettable and the Adipose were way too cute to be taken seriously. I burst out laughing when that spaceship appeared and they all congregated in the street. Utterly typical, utterly ridiculous RTD. Luckily all the Doctor/Donna made the ep brilliant regardless.
One last thing... SO much love for the final scene. Seriously, she finally gets into the Tardis after months of searching, and the first thing Donna wants to do is let her grandad know that 1. she's ok, and 2. not only does the big, wide, wonderful, magical world he believes in exist, but she's gonna grab hold of it with both hands and reach for the stars. His absolute, unrestrained joy for her in that moment was the best part of the entire ep for me ♥ I hope he plays a big role as the season goes on!
EDIT: Sorry just have to add... regarding the Doctor not being himself... at the end, I thought the fact that it was Donna standing in the doorway of the Tardis, not the Doctor, was nicely symbolic and very telling. In both 'Rose' and 'Smith & Jones', it was him leaning against or standing in the doorway of the Tardis, but here, he's out on the street by himself looking utterly lost and out of place during that whole exchange. Not to mention, its always the Doctor running around at a million miles per hour while the companions struggle to keep up. But after the Adipose have gone, its Donna who literally has to take his arm and pull him away. She's the one doing the leading at several points throughout the ep, and having him not framed by the Tardis doorway at the end just hammers the point home even more. :(
My GOD that was entirely too long. Sheesh, talk about a massive geek attack :P
P.S. I'm leaving this public because i'll probably x-post to a comm or two.
First things first. DONNA FREAKING NOBLE. I knew she was going to be awesome, but she surpassed even my expectations. I was one of the very few people who actually loved her in The Runaway Bride (not the first half, but the second half and in particular her final scene). But here we got a Donna much more grown up, mature and brilliant, while still maintaining her spunk and bold craziness. She's like a force of nature, and if anyone is going to be able to take on the Doctor, challenge him, and force him into recognizing his faults through sheer brute force, its her. At the same time though, she's sweet, sensitive, caring, and very very human. Essentially, she's Rose, but with a lot more maturity, wisdom and depth. (Sorry, that sounded a bit harsh. I do like Rose so I didn't mean that in a negative way!)
Some people are criticizing RTD for writing another 'companion puts their life on hold and does nothing with their meaningless, Doctor-less existence' story, but I disagree. Because that look in her eyes when she tells her grandad that she's "waiting"... that's not someone who's dissatisfied and depressed. That's someone full of hope. That's someone on a mission, who is living the life she wants even if its unconventional, and even if she is being criticized for it by people she loves. She's not just drifting, she's searching, and even if she never finds him, she's damn well gonna have a brilliant life trying. I loved her so much for that ♥ Yes, her speech to the Doctor about Egypt was typical RTD trying to impose the above mantra onto the character. But I think Catherine Tate rose above that in her delivery, because what I saw in her most of all was optimistic hope. Unlike Sarah Jane, whose life seemed to come to a standstill after losing the Doctor, Donna is still very much alive.
Now... The Doctor. I was a little stunned with the characterisation of the Doctor in this episode. Absolutely, honestly, stunned. Because I truly didn't expected it from a RTD ep. This Doctor, was an absolute shadow of his former self. Not only did he have a glaringly obviously reduced amount of dialogue in the first half, even after meeting Donna he spent a lot of time quietly working as she babbled on. He was barely reacting. He sometimes seemed off in his own little world of pain and guilt, only half registering the things going on around him. When he realised he couldn't save everyone, he had a massive freak out that I found harder to watch than probably almost all the other comparable scenes in the show to date. He looked petrified. And David conveyed it brilliantly. It was almost like a Post Traumatic Stress response, taking him straight back to the moment he knew he couldn't save Astrid; the Master; Rose etc. He didn't stop and think and try and work out another way, he just... froze. The losses are piling up, and finally we get to see it having a real impact on him.
And the idea of taking on another companion, scares him to death. He so desperately craves companionship, he so desperately needs a hand to hold, a person to talk to, to share the universe with, and yet when he invites her on board it looks like its taking everything he has not to just run away. Because he's getting to the point where the trail of destroyed lives he leaves in his wake is becoming simply too much to deal with. Up until this point he's been the master of repression and denial. Of course, he has his moments of emo, but he can compartmentalise unlike anyone i've ever seen. The Doctor in this episode appears to have completely lost that ability. The floodgates have opened and there's no turning back. He's scared. He's scared to death, and I cant help but be very very worried that he's taken a gigantic bite out of the metaphorical apple by inviting another companion on board at this point, and man does he know it. But like the doomed tragic hero he is, he does it anyway. If he loses Donna, if her arc really is going to be as heartbreaking and tragic as RTD keeps insisting, I shudder to think about the impact that's going to have on him. Because he's hanging on by a very thin thread already.
Of course, knowing RTD, this entire Broken!Doctor characterisation could be dropped entirely next week :P Obviously they cant have him fragile and shattered the entire season, but I sincerely hope they don't suddenly go back to s2 happy Doctor, because there's a real opportunity for some great character moments if they follow this story through properly.
This is getting way too long, but I also have to say that I ADORED all the Martha references ♥ I squeed entirely too much when he said Martha was "brilliant", and it broke my heart to hear that he believes he "destroyed half her life". The Martha that we saw in Torchwood was far from destroyed, and I think its gonna do wonders for the Doctor to see her again, all confident and intelligent and sure of herself. She may have gone through hell with the Doctor, but man did she come out the other side someone to be proud of :D Martha encapsulates what this show is about: a companion who took everything the Doctor taught her, and has used it to better herself and her life. Her normal life. On Earth. She doesn't need to be whizzing around the universe in the little blue box, she truly gets that the greatest adventure you can have is a life on earth with the people you love. And I hope the Doctor realises that when he sees her again, because it might be enough to allow him to come to terms with everything he did (and didn't do) for, and to her, last year.
Catherine Tate freaking ROCKS. 5 minutes in and I was already saying she's gonna be my favourite companion so far :) She's a brilliant comedic actress, but man does she deliver in the serious scenes. And her chemistry with David just sparkles. They are going to be the best Tardis team ever :D
There is nothing I can say about THAT scene that hasn't already been said by everyone else, so i'll just say that yes, I screamed. I literally screamed when I saw the back of her head :P I cant believe they managed to keep it entirely under wraps! That's a serious achievement :)
The alien plot itself was really kinda weak ;) Miss Foster was pretty forgettable and the Adipose were way too cute to be taken seriously. I burst out laughing when that spaceship appeared and they all congregated in the street. Utterly typical, utterly ridiculous RTD. Luckily all the Doctor/Donna made the ep brilliant regardless.
One last thing... SO much love for the final scene. Seriously, she finally gets into the Tardis after months of searching, and the first thing Donna wants to do is let her grandad know that 1. she's ok, and 2. not only does the big, wide, wonderful, magical world he believes in exist, but she's gonna grab hold of it with both hands and reach for the stars. His absolute, unrestrained joy for her in that moment was the best part of the entire ep for me ♥ I hope he plays a big role as the season goes on!
EDIT: Sorry just have to add... regarding the Doctor not being himself... at the end, I thought the fact that it was Donna standing in the doorway of the Tardis, not the Doctor, was nicely symbolic and very telling. In both 'Rose' and 'Smith & Jones', it was him leaning against or standing in the doorway of the Tardis, but here, he's out on the street by himself looking utterly lost and out of place during that whole exchange. Not to mention, its always the Doctor running around at a million miles per hour while the companions struggle to keep up. But after the Adipose have gone, its Donna who literally has to take his arm and pull him away. She's the one doing the leading at several points throughout the ep, and having him not framed by the Tardis doorway at the end just hammers the point home even more. :(
My GOD that was entirely too long. Sheesh, talk about a massive geek attack :P
P.S. I'm leaving this public because i'll probably x-post to a comm or two.